For many years, firefighters have worn protective uniforms or garments to protect themselves from excessive and hazardous temperatures that occur during a fire. While these protective garments have become proficient at insulating the firefighter from potentially hazardous temperatures, these garments have also reduced the firefighter's ability to sense changing conditions of the environment.
In the past, firefighters detected extreme temperatures with their earlobes, which were the only part of the body exposed to the atmosphere. However, firefighters now wear turnout coats, hoods, helmets, and boots that cover the entire body, leaving no body parts for detecting extreme temperatures.
In any event, firefighters can only operate for a relatively short period of time in environments having temperatures above certain levels. When firefighters are exposed to excessive temperatures for a prolonged period of time, firefighters may be injured and the firefighter's uniform may be damaged.
Substantial improvements in the protection of firefighters from exposure to excessive temperatures are disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,909. That patent is directed to a protective garment for use by firefighters, and more particularly to a firefighter's turnout coat which includes an interior temperature sensing circuit programmed to generate a signal when the temperature in the firefighter's environment exceeds a predetermined limit. That permits the firefighter's coat to generate an audible signal to alert the firefighter wearing the garment that the temperature has exceeded that preset limit.